What an underrated gem. Sure, judging it as a successor of Race Driver: Grid, it doesn't hold up in many ways but as it's own entity it's really good. It's important not to view it as a simulator or even a simcade because it's very much an arcade game.
I've just finished the campaign and while it was mostly a grind fest and by the end I was sick of all the same locations and turns (especially Dubai) I'm still happy I stuck through it. The game really makes you feel like some viral racing star and I liked my organic rivalry with the other drivers on the track. Bruno Silva is really just a yellow-orange car that you only see on the track but everytime I had to fight with him for the first place it felt personal. Especially when he would ram me in the Face Offs.
The twisty hillside races were the absoluty highlights of the game. Halfway through I realized that I can just turn of the in-game music and blast some eurobeat from Spotify. Highly recommended for everyone.
The drifting mechanic is different from the predecessor. I'd say it's a step back but I didn't mind it. However, I straight up skipped the Drift races.
Overall, it's an initially flawed game that got better with age.